Images | Track laying begins on €15.3bn Rail Baltica project in Lithuania

The first 8.8km of track between Šveicarija and Žeimiai in the Jonava district is due for completion by the end of this year.

National project implementer LTG Infra has procured 86,200 tonnes of ballast, 29,500 sleepers and 42km of rails for the initial phase. A joint venture between Leonhard Weiss in Germany and Estonia is installing the upper track structure on the Šveicarija–Žeimiai section under a €13.9 million contract.

“Territorial planning, design, and preparation take up a significant portion of the project timeline. However, construction - especially track laying - is a fast-moving phase. Our priority now is to maintain the momentum we achieved last year and continue progressing at pace,” said Egidijus Lazauskas, CEO of LTG Group.

Following construction of the entire track, the high-speed railway will be electrified as part of a €1.8 billion contract signed in September with COBELEC Rail Baltica covering the three Baltic States.

Rail Baltica is now in full-scale construction across Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. In Estonia, 105km of substructure works are underway, while Latvia is prioritising its southern section near Iecava linking Riga with the Lithuanian border. In Lithuania, works on the 77km Kaunas–Panevėžys section include construction of embankments and engineering structures, with activity to extend to 114km by the end of 2025.

By that point, 43% of the 870km Rail Baltica mainline is expected to be “construction-ready”, according to Rail Baltica.